The immediate effects of vog are being felt mostly by Big Island farmers and the agricultural industry, but representatives of Hawai'i County and its tourism industry warned yesterday morning that the long-term affects could be devastating.

"Right now we need more scientific statistics to base our findings on instead of anecdotal information," said Rex Johnson, president and CEO of the Hawai'i Tourism Authority. "You can see right now how it affects farmers, but long-term, if the Big Island gets a reputation for air pollution, it will hurt us."

Johnson, along with Hawai'i County Realtors, the Hawai'i Island Chamber of Commerce and representatives of other organizations, gave their testimony at the State Capitol during a House of Representatives special committee meeting studying vog effects. All representatives were from the Big Island.

It was the third meeting for the committee, the first two having dealt with health and public safety and on agriculture.

While most of the information supplied yesterday was anecdotal about the effects of vog on the Big Island economy, Big Island farmers got some relief when the secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a Secretarial Disaster Designation for production and physical losses that have resulted from volcanic emissions on the Big Island.

This designation allows Big Island farmers to apply for low-interest emergency loans to cover losses caused by the vog. Eligible producers may borrow up to 100 percent of actual production or physical losses, not to exceed a total of $500,000.

The disaster declaration, while welcome, isn't enough, said state Rep. Robert Herkes, D-5th (Ka'u, S. Kona), chairman of the vog effects committee.

"We're still waiting for the president to declare a natural disaster proclamation because of the vog," he said.

Yesterday's meeting was to deal with the effect vog is having on, among other things, property assessments, real estate sales, tourism and business in general.

But all who testified said it is too early to give a true assessment. Though Kilauea has been erupting since 1983, vog emissions have only recently risen since a new vent formed in March.

Johnson and John Monahan, president and CEO of the Hawai'i Visitors & Convention Bureau, each said the viewing area to watch the volcano erupt is bringing in 5,000 visitors a day.

"An erupting volcano is always a major tourist attraction," Monahan said.

Tourism numbers released yesterday for the Big Island showed June arrivals down 12.7 percent and visitor spending down 5.2 percent from a year ago, Johnson said. However, both he and Monahan believe that's more a reflection of the economic climate.